Forum adverts like this one are shown to any user who is not logged in. Join us by filling out a tiny 3 field form and you will get your own, free, dakka user account which gives a good range of benefits to you: No adverts like this in the forums anymore. Times and dates in your local timezone. Full tracking of what you have read so you can skip to your first unread post, easily see what has changed since you last logged in, and easily see what is new at a glance. Email notifications for threads you want to watch closely. Being a part of the oldest wargaming community on the net. If you are already a member then feel free to login now.

C'mon (Ha!) Cincy!

That quick recovery was a bit much to believe, even for you!

(Unless that was a potion of Extra Healing she got - and not just milk o' the poppy!)

 Alpharius wrote:
Of those somewhat cool Arya theories?

Nope!

Just good old writers not paying too much attention to detail!

Dedicated fans jumping through hoops trying to rationalise bad writing, "surely it must be some sort of master plan?". Turns out they really are just bad writers.

I know, right?

Still rather disappointing, and one of the more egregious examples of it as of late, I think?

This season has been a massive disappointment for me so far. I've spent most of it waiting for them to get on with it, then when a cool moment from the trailer does arrive it's a massive let down.

I chose violence - just a tiny amount of it, that has almost no impact on anything.

Seige of riverrun - or just open the gates and let them in.

The blackfish - interesting character, lets kill him off screen who needs to see a fight, we want more talking.

Lets fill 5 minutes of screen time with greyworm trying to tell a joke.

Arya wins - you don't need to see it, we'll just imply it was a cool fight.

I glad the story is moving along, but it feels like a snails pace and Hodor's death has been the only EPIC moment in 8 episodes! That's right a man holding a door shut has been the best part of the series so far.

Cersi's "Violence" choice wasn't as effective as we thought - because she was once again outmaneuvered by the High Sparrow.

The Riverrun thing...yeah, that was disappointing but...maybe the Blackfish isn't really dead?

The Arya storytelling has been a bit of a mess, and I'd like to have seen the Final Fight too - but they were already stretch things as it was with her recovery from being gut stabbed. Plus I guess they thought it amped up the tension for the final scene in the temple and the big...'reveal' that she's going back to Westros?

But having written all that?

I've still really enjoyed this season!

I think this has been a great season- maybe the best so far - but there are some definite weak points.

Part of enjoying fiction is accepting that sometimes characters get injured and recover on a schedule dictated by the plot, which doesn't generally allow for 6 months of physical therapy We accept that all the time. Unfortunately in Arya's case it was so extreme that I think it broke immersion in the show. The wounds she suffered were nearly fatal, but she was pretty much OK. Definitely bad writing. About the only thing about it I was OK as far as Arya's line with was not showing the actual fight because we've established she spent so long, and so recently, blind.

One of the most teased things this season has been "I choose violence" and then as Tamereth said, that was it? It was cool but where was the rest of the violence we wanted?

So far as the Blackfish, I don't believe he is alive. There is no reason to disbelieve when he said he would go down fighting, it's unlikely the Lannister troops wouldn't recognize him, impossible they'd cover up an escape, and so on. He's dead. They should have shown the fight, or at least given you something a little more definitive offscreen (like the end of Syrio Forel's fight, or Sansa's septa). It's an odd thing to have done because in the books,


One other thing about this season, I'm increasingly starting to believe what I read about them trying to bring down the creature effects budget. Yeah, we'll put in Drogon this episode, but when you actually see him, he's tiny, blurred, and in the distance.

Next week is going to be the Battle of the Bastards so a lot of these threads are going to hang for a week, unfortunately :(

"I chose violence" did have a direct impact on the story, since it directly removed Trial by Combat as an option as a result.

 d-usa wrote:
"I chose violence" did have a direct impact on the story, since it directly removed Trial by Combat as an option as a result.

Tommen doesn't know he is being manipulated by the high sparrow.

 Asherian Command wrote:

 d-usa wrote:
"I chose violence" did have a direct impact on the story, since it directly removed Trial by Combat as an option as a result.

Tommen doesn't know he is being manipulated by the high sparrow.

Yes - and:

 Alpharius wrote:

 Asherian Command wrote:

 d-usa wrote:
"I chose violence" did have a direct impact on the story, since it directly removed Trial by Combat as an option as a result.

Tommen doesn't know he is being manipulated by the high sparrow.

Yes - and:

Spoiler:

I think Cersi is going to choose the 'Nuclear Option' - set off the wild fire under the church - but after she gives the go ahead, she then finds out that...who is with the High Sparrow right now? Oh yes, it is Tommen!!!!

And then maybe a lot more of King's Landing goes up in smoke too?

So like this?




I wouldn't mind that lol

Ha!

Maybe?

It is just a theory though!

 Alpharius wrote:
Ha!

Maybe?

It is just a theory though!

Well, it hasn't happened in the books yet so yes, its a theory. It fits with her character and her past actions though.

Jaime mentioned something about "burning cities to ash to protect her children" to Edmure Tully when referencing Cersei. Coincidence?

Folk really will jump through an obstacle course-worth of mental hoops to excuse the flaws in this show(which, I hasten to add, are nowhere near sufficient to detract from its overall awesomeness) - read a review of the episode that's actually positing Arya was actually no longer injured when she flees the Waif, and the "burst stitches and bloody handprint" bit was...wait for it...fruit pulp!

Yep, apparently it was all a cunning plan to lure the Waif to a place Arya could put her blindfighting skills to use using blood oranges from the market, or something.

 Yodhrin wrote:
Folk really will jump through an obstacle course-worth of mental hoops to excuse the flaws in this show(which, I hasten to add, are nowhere near sufficient to detract from its overall awesomeness) - read a review of the episode that's actually positing Arya was actually no longer injured when she flees the Waif, and the "burst stitches and bloody handprint" bit was...wait for it...fruit pulp!

Yep, apparently it was all a cunning plan to lure the Waif to a place Arya could put her blindfighting skills to use using blood oranges from the market, or something.

Or people forget that the kid in the show (Arya) is still suppose to be 16-17 in the show......

She is smart, but I do think she can have moments of weakness.

I'm glad the whole faceless story is done now. I thought the whole thing was dull and didn't care about it at all. I liked it better when she was running around with the hound. Maybe they'll meet up soon and be besties again.

I liked the part with jamie waving to briene. Blackfish was a waste, didn't read the books but I was expecting more out of old grumpypants.

What's going on with Bran now? Or did they forget him for the rest of the season again?

Looks like there will be lots of good people smushing at the hands of the giant next week. I have a feeling he's gonna die in the bolton fight though, probably sacrificing himself all heroic-like.

Really good and Really bad......

Really Good
Hound - great stuff, proper violence - nice.
Jamie - great bit of work - saved hundreds of lives and he is the bad guy Nice dialogue as well both with Brienne and hier.
"I choose violence" - great but much too short.
Great Tyrion bit
Oh and angry Dany shows up on a Dragon - sweet.

Really Bad
Arya - oh that was just bad - from the mortal wound that apparently nearly healed in a few hours and caused her no issues part from abit of blood to the whole - well I am off then - ok says head of the Assassins, bye...

As my friend said afterwards " A man is there as a plot device, he is no one and nothing,"

Guess the slavers have not realised its hard to conduct a siege from ships - your war engines tend to be smaller and less asccurate - still guess they are all about to burnt by a certain dragon Huzarh - unless we have to suffer yet more GRM style delays Hopefully not.

Oh and go Team Ramsey

I kind of feel sorry for people who have read the books at this point, simply because IMHO this season is by far the best, and I absolutely cannot wait each week for the next episode. The plot is finally moving along at a nice pace and there are interesting cool things happening almost every single week. From what I'm reading here (and across the net) about complaints, it feels like the legacy of the books are like an anchor for those who have read them.

I don't want to sound like those feelings and complaints aren't legitimate. I'm absolutely sure they are. But for someone like me who hasn't read the books, the show at this point is pretty much pure awesomeness.

Personally, I don't get the need to see Blackfish's death portrayed on screen. In the show, he was an incredibly minor character, and devoting even just one more scene to seeing him getting butchered would have been completely pointless. I actually prefer to have my last view of him triumphantly making his (terrible) decision to go out on his own terms.

Yeah, Ayra's recovery seemed ridiculously fast, but I forgive it the same way I forgive the crazy time-warping they do all the time to make the plots fit nicely into certain episodes...did we really want to have to wait until the next season for Ayra to finish recovering? No of course not. Could they have had Ayra suffer a much less dangerous wound instead to get around this? Sure, but having such a deadly wound was part of the excitement/cliffhanger of the previous episode (even if there was little chance of her dying at that point).

So I just assume that Ayra was actually healing for a few weeks instead of one night. While there were no visual cues to support this, there also wasn't anything to completely disprove it either.

And as for not getting to see the Ayra/Waif fight. I don't get it. That was totally in character with what has been shown up to this point...Ayra's only advantage at that point over the Waif was to fight her in a blind situation where her blind training would give her a massive advantage. So she did what a good assassin/fighter would do, and used that to her advantage. Of course, a blind fight is pointless to show on TV, so just revealing the outcome of that fight as they did was perfect.

I don't feel like Ayra's journey to Brasvos was a waste. She learned a lot during that time, including how to take a beating, better fighting skills, the ability to fight in the dark, the ability to fight and escape while seriously injured, etc. Plus, where it is left, we feel like she finally knows who she is and what she needs to do.

Was that plot handled better in the books? Maybe. Probably. I honestly don't care. I found it plenty satisfying on my TV, and as always am looking forward to the next ep.

I have read the books at release from the start, and prefer the TV show. Is it the greatest story ever told? Certainly not, but its better than reading several hundred pages about characters in a new POV just to have them die off screen in the next chapter. I loved books 1-3, 4 was a pain to read and 5 really just pissed me off. I won't be reading any of GRRM's further efforts, even if he manages to finish 6. A thousand pages of travel log gak followed by a fistful of cliffhanger endings isn't great writing.

At this point it seems like all the remaining Starks have learned their respective traits (John - Battlefield commander, Sanda - Diplomacy and "the game", Bran - being Bran, Arya - Fighting and spying, Rickon - being a pawn) while also finding their own identity as Starks.

 Shadow Captain Edithae wrote:
Grey Worm is a secret alcoholic. It is known.


Automatically Appended Next Post:
Blackish is an idiot.

Don't remember this on the show?

Kindle autocorrect is racist. It is known.

Snowbowl 2016! HERE WE COME!!!!

 Yodhrin wrote:
Folk really will jump through an obstacle course-worth of mental hoops to excuse the flaws in this show(which, I hasten to add, are nowhere near sufficient to detract from its overall awesomeness) - read a review of the episode that's actually positing Arya was actually no longer injured when she flees the Waif, and the "burst stitches and bloody handprint" bit was...wait for it...fruit pulp!

Yep, apparently it was all a cunning plan to lure the Waif to a place Arya could put her blindfighting skills to use using blood oranges from the market, or something.

As the scene was happening I did wonder if it was going to being revealed as a fruit pulp feint as well. But yeah. It's a fantasy tv story. As soon as bandages are applied the injury gets to go away.

pretty fething cool

Also for everyone to laugh at...

Please enjoy this amazing TLDW of game of thrones..


BEWARE HARSH LANGUAGE

http://imgur.com/a/4EEPH

Great posts Dracpanzer and Yakface.

The show def has its faults but it has outgrown and surpassed the source material now on so many levels.

 Mr Morden wrote:

The show def has its faults but it has outgrown and surpassed the source material now on so many levels.

I still prefer the books.

.. Frankly all the various Arya theories were better than what we got.

Did admire the terminatoresque pursuit by the waif.


Assuming the Blackfish actor has other commitments, seemed a bit of a pointless death but there you go.

.... Did hope Cersei was going to let her pet kill all the zealots who came to arrest her, still they'll get theirs I guess.

The only way in which it has surpassed the books is in pacing, cutting out the pointless meandering and time wasting. The show is actually willing to get things done and advance the storyline. Now that the show has ran out of tracks for its railroad, the writing is becoming very dire. Many sequences/events in the books are just...better.

Dorne was far more interesting and better written.
There were no lines about "Bad pussy".
The Faceless Men were larger than just two people, actually made sense and were a truly menacing organisation.
There was no Tyrion-Jaime conversation in a black cell about their dim wit cousin smashing beetles.
The Blackfish wasn't an idiot, and chose to escape rather than die pointlessly.
Jon and the Wildlings travelled by ship to the docks at East watch. They didn't inexplicably walk inland nort of the wall to the gate at castle black.
The Kingsmoot made sense. Enron didn't just show up, made some jokes about penises and win the crowd.
There was no Meeren Comedy Club.

 Silent Puffin? wrote:

 Mr Morden wrote:

The show def has its faults but it has outgrown and surpassed the source material now on so many levels.

I still prefer the books.

Me too. The series is very good, particularly now I've divorced it from the books in my head, but yeah I prefer the books, particularly certain parts (Mostly the stuff Shadow Captain Edithae outlined, and also Jaime's character in general).